mire of greed | SCRIP-BITS

Psalm 118:14. The Lord is my strength and song, and has become my salvation.

And then it was Friday again mih people; the eve of the weekend, the short weekly reprieve from massa’s labour.

And all the working people joyfully declared: ‘Thank God is Friday yes! This labouring business getting too hard now oui! What with all the layoffs and cutbacks, we doing even more work now than before, for the same measly pittance. Is time for a four or three day workweek yes! Why we have to work more than twice the amount of time we rest eh?’

Good question Friends, but one that I can only guess at an answer. That being, is so the oppressive and greedy owners of the capital see it. And we lucky to be even getting two days off a week, because many people around the world still labouring seven days a week for not even a liveable wage.

That’s just the way world is set up, where the strong, the rich and powerful fix things to suit their own selfish ends and purposes, with little, if any regard or respect for the wishes and feelings of their fellowman. Anyway, the whys and wherefores are now elementary, we just have to live with it and say, the Lord be praised.

But in addition to that we can chant our Friday Chant, which gives us a bright and true perspective on the weekend and its uses. So let’s all chant with loud, sweet, harmonious voices. ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.

Now, please help me to get sufficient fun, fellowship, rest and relaxation in these two short days off, so that I can be renewed and refreshed in soul, body and mind, to go back out and do it all over again next week, furthering your glorious kingdom with each step I take. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.’

Now that’s how we ought to face the weekend my people! And furthermore, let’s add our Bit to the mix. ‘The Lord is my strength and song, and has become my salvation.’ That gives us an even better perspective, since we’re all better off when the Lord God Jehovah is our rock and high tower, our strength and our fortress.

And the psalmist was so moved by our Bit, that he continued in full adoring and reverent voice: ‘The voice of rejoicing and salvation is in the tabernacles (tents) of the righteous: the right hand of the Lord doeth valiantly. The right hand of the Lord is exalted: the right hand of the Lord doeth valiantly. I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord.’ (Ps.118:15-17)

Yes Friends, all of that is the absolutely incontestable, irrevocable truth! For rejoicing and salvation is indeed found wherever the righteous gather!

And as for the Lord’s right hand…Hn! It’s just mighty and magnificent to whatever purpose it’s put to; whether as a tool of justice, war, basic strength or mercy! That’s why it’s so exalted!

And as true believers, we will certainly not die, but live joyfully declaring the awesome works of the Lord to all and sundry, all over the world.

Oh my brethren, what an important role we have to play in the bringing of lost souls to Jesus! It’s actually the most important role of each believer’s earthly life. All others are subject and secondary to that one.

And that great man of God, Isaiah, felt it so forcefully and completely that he couldn’t help but make this profound proclamation. ‘Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he has also become my salvation. Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.

And in that day shall ye say, Praise the Lord, call upon his name, declare his doings (deeds) among the people, make mention that his name is exalted. Sing unto the Lord; for he hath done excellent things: this is known in all the earth. Cry out and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion: for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee.’ (Is.12:2-6)

Oh mih breddren, what lovely praise and exaltation on behalf of our wonderful, magnificent, majestic and magnanimous God!

There’s nothing I can say to add to or better that, except possibly this last sentence from the scholars’ explanation. ‘With beautiful imagery, Isaiah closes this section of prophecy with a triumphal doxology of praise.’

And that’s gospel Friends! So please, today and everyday henceforth, let’s find some way, regardless of how small it might be, to make a positive difference in our troubled, calamitous, evil and godless world.

For without our righteous action in Jesus’ holy name, our badly guided world will continue to wallow in the mire of greed, evil, oppression and deceit, and will eventually end up in hell in a hand basket.

Remember though, that out job is to prevent such a disastrous thing from happening. So let’s get some serious action going along those lines my people, so that our heavenly Father can look down on us and be pleased, and not regret that He ever sacrificed His One Son for our abominable sins.

Remember too, that any time we don’t walk in the Father’s will, we’re making a mockery of Jesus’ death. And we definitely don’t want to do that. Nuff said.

Now let’s go out and put our hands to the plough. And remember – don’t ever look back. Much LOVE!

…the pilgrim’s earthly journey is rough…but with Jesus first and foremost in his heart…the endless miles pass away like nothing…under his divinely guided feet…

Proverbs 4:26: Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established.

Oh Friends, it’s Friday; Freedom Day! Hn, hn! Yes, the weekend is finally here, and there are joyous shouts all around the world of ‘TGIF! Thank God is Friday! Freedom Day here at last!’

And though it’s only a measly two days off from labouring, for the lucky ones that is, we tend to so eagerly look forward to it from the very first day of work on Monday.

Ah Lord eh! Just imagine going to work in the rush hour traffic on Monday and already wishing that it were the Friday rush hour traffic taking you home. Something’s definitely wrong with that picture Friends!

How can we ever be a truly positive and productive society when work is perceived as such an invasive and negative action, such a terrible burden? This generation has lost the work ethic our parents and grand parents had, and which is absolutely essential in building a successful society.

I don’t believe that our forefathers really LOVED work all that much, but they certainly understood the benefits it brought, and there are indeed a whole lot of them. Just be out of work for any length of time and you’ll see what they are.

But unfortunately, we’ve raised our children not to value work, or the ethic that it instils in us, even though we’ve had to work our butts off to give them what they belief is their rightful entitlement.

And in this ever worsening economy, where jobs, decent and/or otherwise are constantly disappearing and thus shrinking, along with the remuneration offered, that negative atmosphere certainly doesn’t help those who are genuinely interested in work.

Ah Friends, the questions and answers to our worldwide dilemma are many and complex, and will not be easily solved, especially with the current misguided belt-tightening attitude that is sweeping governments across the world.

I was taught that the role of government was to help the people in tough times. But obviously the reigning principles are preaching the opposite lesson, with the new watchword being ‘austerity.’

May the Lord have mercy on us yes, and catch us before we sink even further into the mire of greed and bad government!

However Friends, as believers, the most important thing for us to do is to hold on tightly to our faith in a just and righteous God, who has faithfully promised to look after us, come what may.

So before we go out to labour today, we the lucky minority, let’s give some thanks and praise for whatever we have, be it much or little, and chant our Friday Chant. That will allow us to have and keep a right perspective on the upcoming weekend.

All together now: ‘Oh Lord, thanks for getting me safely through another week of work! It hasn’t been easy, but with your generous help, I made it through.

Yes my people, please let that mindset hold and guide us for today.

And now for our Bit, which blends nicely with what we were just talking about. But we also need the scripture before and after it to get the context, the true picture, the true essence of our Bit, where Cousin Sol is talking of wisdom being life and health.

‘Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. Put away from thee a froward (deceitful) mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee. Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee. Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.’ (Prov.4:23-27)

Ah Friends, what words of awesome wisdom! Cousin Sol has been called the wisest man ever, for very good reason.

Now here’s some good info from the scholars. ‘Heart could often be translated “mind” in the book (Proverbs). Since the Hebrews had no separate word for “mind,” the word “heart” often served to represent the seat of intellect. The key to the whole man is his mind. Whatever captures the mind, captures the man.’

And isn’t that the everlasting truth, my brethren! Whatever our mind conjures up, is what we tend to dwell on. That means we have to be ever so careful about the things we think on.

Consequently, deceit and lies must be eradicated from our minds. We have to look straight ahead, focus on what’s before us, always seeking God’s righteous kingdom, and not turning away either to the left or the right. It’s of the utmost importance that we truly consider the path we tread in this earthly life, not letting our feet lead us to where evil lies.

And this is not mere talk, my fellow believers, it’s stuff that should be completely rooted in our hearts and minds, for without that guiding light, our lives will continually veer from right to left and back again, bringing us no sense of peace or righteousness.

Now there’s more scripture to be addressed on this topic, but if I do so today, it will make the Bit too long, and I always have to keep in mind our busy schedules and short attention spans. (smile) So we’ll let that suffice for today. We have enough stuff to ponder anyway, and the Lord willing, we’ll continue on this subject tomorrow.

Till then my fellow believers, please let’s thoroughly consider the things we allow to engulf our minds, for therein lies the way to our hearts, and the direction we take in this earthly life.

And may the Lord bless and keep us, make His face to shine upon us, and give us His wonderful peace, until we meet again, be it here on earth, or in heaven above. Much LOVE!

…the mind is the breeding ground…for either good or evil…so the one we breed…depends entirely on us…

SCRIP-BITS

Today’s Scrip-Bit 16 August 2013 Psalm 118:14

Today’s Scrip-Bit 7 June 2013 Proverbs 4:26

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